Sutton Bridge wife pays tribute to her 'soul mate' who died after collision in Centenary Way as fundraising continues

Tributes have been paid to a Sutton Bridge father who died in a collision last week.

Andrius Toliunas (40) was tragically making the short journey home to eat on Friday morning when the Vauxhall Meriva he was driving was involved in a collision with a lorry on Centenary Way, Sutton Bridge.

He leaves behind wife Ana Toliuniene and four-year-old son Aivaras Toliunas.

Ana has described Andrius - who had recently celebrated his 40th birthday - as her 'soul mate' and is 'feeling the pain of his loss deep in her soul'.

Two fundraising web pages have been launched by kind-hearted neighbours to help Ana and Aivaras - which have so far raised nearly £3,000.

Neighbour Gareth Edwards has started one of the campaigns and is hoping that businesses will also support the fundraising effort.

He said: "I found him to be a very friendly and considerate person. Always in a good mood and happy to chat – he’ll be sorely missed."

Andrius was born in December 1982 and his family come from Elektrėnai in Lithuania.

He and Ana began seeing each other in 2005 before tying the knot on July 25, 2015.

Their son Aivaras was born three years later.

After moving to the UK in 2011, Andrius started work at Bakkavor Salads in Sutton Bridge where he has worked since then.

He was a hygiene operative and was responsible for the industrial cleaning of all factory areas and machinery.

Sadly, Andrius was on his way home to eat after forgetting his lunch when the incident happened on Friday morning.

Ana is being supported by Andrius' mother, Laima, who has come to this country to help.

His family would now like to return Andrius to Lithuania for burial and neighbours are hoping the fundraising will help with this.

Gareth has praised the generosity of people who have contributed to the fundraising so far.

He said: "I’ve never done any fundraising before and didn’t know what to expect, but the number of contributors and the amounts received have been incredible - a real testament to his character and how well people thought of him.

"I think any help that can be provided to his family - financial or otherwise - is want he would have wanted for them."

If you would like to support the fundraising please click here. The second fundraising page can also be found here.

Police closed Centenary Way in Sutton Bridge for several hours on Friday while their investigations took place.

They have appealed for witnesses or dashcam footage of the incident.